Dedicated to the Business of Contemporary Live Music
THE DEPARTMENT for Digital Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) has awarded over £1 million more to small venues than the £2.25 million it pledged in July. Venues receiving grants of between £1,000 and £80,000 include London’s The Troubadour (cap. 135), Birmingham’s The Sunflower Lounge (120) and Think Tank? (200) in…
Read moreLARGE VENUES in England could be eligible to apply for £270 million of repayable funds under the government’s £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund (CRF), announced in July. The loans, whose criteria were announced on 14 August, are aimed at culturally significant organisations, viable before Covid-19 but now at risk of…
Read moreINDOOR CONCERTS can take place from 15 August under socially distanced conditions, says the Government, which had originally set the date as 1 August. To stage a live indoor event, organisers must limit audience capacity to ensure social distancing throughout the premises. Measures involved include making a risk assessment –…
Read moreTHE COMPANY behind a new type of anti-viral face covering believes its product could play a significant role in reopening indoor live music and other sectors. AnyBrand, headed by hotel entrepreneur Colin Graham, is lobbying both the Department of Culture Media & Sport (DCMS) Select Committee and umbrella body UK…
Read moreVETERAN AGENT, promoter, talent developer Rob Hallett and his company Robomagic are parting company with Live Nation Entertainment. The companies joined forces three years ago. Hallett helped develop artistes including Dexy’s Midnight Runners, UB40, Adam Ant and Duran Duran in the 1980s, debuted the likes of Justin Timberlake and Destiny’s…
Read moreVETERAN AGENT John Jackson’s K2 Agency has joined forces with Los Angeles-based private equity firm The Yucaipa Companies (TYC), whose entertainment arm owns US agency Artist Group International (AGI). K2 was formed by Jackson in October 2002, with clients Iron Maiden, Metallica and Guns N’Roses, after he left Helter Skelter…
Read moreTHE DEBATE over whether the city needs a second arena has heated-up as Manchester Arena (cap. 21,000) operator ASM Global unveils plans for an upgrade to 24,000 capacity, Rival Oak View Group (OVG), also US based, is proposing a 23,500-capacity arena in the city’s Eastlands district, saying it would be…
Read moreTHE ANNOUNCEMENT by Prime Minister Boris Johnson that indoor performances with socially distanced audiences could take place throughout England from 1 August, has been given a cautious welcome by the Association of Independent Promoters (AIP). Johnson said that the Department of Digital, Culture Media and Sport is working with the…
Read moreA SERIES of drive-in concerts at 12 sites across has been cancelled by promoter Live Nation Entertainment (LNE), which cites the potential for local lockdowns as the reason. Sponsored by energy company Utilita, the concerts promised a typical capacity of 300 cars with up to seven people per car, for…
Read moreTHE ANNUAL survey of festivals’ environmental practices by sustainability campaign Vision 2025 takes a different tone this year following the cancellation of all events this summer. Instead of questions about organisers’ sustainability practices during the season, the poll will ask them how their experiences this year will affect their environmental…
Read moreViagogo offered to divest itself of StubHub’s European business in a last minute bid to gain a green light from UK regulators over the controversial $4.05 billion acquisition of its secondary ticketing rival. The news was revealed on 17 July, after the Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) published a full…
Read moreTHE ASSOCIATION of Independent Promoters (AIP) hosts two online masterclasses for new promoters at 11am on Mon 27 and Fri 31 July, to address issues created by Covid-19 and explore what the future may hold. The first session Being Resilient features Conal Dodds of Crosstown Concerts and AIP’s John Rostron,…
Read moreNORTH EASTERN promoter SSD is launching the first non-drive-in outdoor concerts since lockdown, using Unity Arena, a new socially-distanced venue set up at Newcastle Racecourse at Gosforth Park. Working with sponsor Virgin Money, SSD, which promotes festivals This is Tomorrow (cap. 15,000) and Bingley Weekender (5,000) is staging a series…
Read moreAFTER RAISING £80,000 and exceeding its donations target by £30,000, management at London’s 900-capacity Union Chapel (UC) in Islington doubled its target to £100,000. The venue achieved its initial target partly with the help of a fundraiser by singer/actor Jess Guise and husband Frank Turner, although most came from nearly…
Read moreA full planning application for the Gateshead Quays development project, which includes a 12,500-seat arena to be managed by ASM Global, has been submitted by Gateshead Council’s development partner Ask: Patrizia. A joint venture between Ask Real Estate and German investment group Patrizia, the scheme comprises a 10-acre complex on…
Read moreLEGENDARY PROMOTER Vince Power says September this year is the earliest London’s 500-capacity Dingwalls in Camden can reopen although it may remain closed until the New Year, depending on the Covid crisis. He tells live UK he is occupying the venue after signing a deal with an organisation he declined…
Read moreGRASSROOTS VENUES’ campaigner Music Venue Trust (MVT) is hailing the Government’s £1.57 billion funding for cultural and arts organisations affected by the Covid-19 lockdown as a triumph for the sector, The Trust’s website posts the news under an archive image of pub-goers holding a sign altered to say “We Win!…
Read moreTHE POLAR Bear (cap. 200) in Hull is live streaming weekly performances until mid-August, to showcase artistes and maintain live music at the venue. Taking place every Tuesday and organised in conjunction with promoter Humber Street Sesh (HSS), the shows see artistes perform on the dance-floor area in a living…
Read moreTHE COMPETITION and Markets Authority (CMA) is to undertake a Phase 2 in-depth investigation into the $4.05 billion (£2.91bn) merger of the two biggest secondary ticketing operators, Viagogo and StubHub. The CMA launched an initial Phase 1 investigation into the merger in December and announced its findings in early June. It…
Read moreIT IS unclear whether the government has heeded the appeal of over 1,500 artistes in early July to with its announcement of aid for culture, arts and heritage institutions. Whether the industry’s #letthemusicplay campaigned influenced its decision to allocate £4.5 billion to support the live entertainment sector is debatable, but…
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